Eco-Act - our Environmental Film Project

Eco Act is a film made by a group of Londoners with different faith backgrounds. In this film we try and raise awareness about fighting climate change from different faith perspectives and encourage action.

We want to use this film as a tool to pass on knowledge about the links between faith and the environment and share practical ways that everyone can take environmental action that has individual, communal and global benefits. We intend for Eco Act to be a platform for discussion on faith and the environment. Looking at the values of environmental conservation reveals that we have so much in common, regardless of faith or belief background.

The degradation of our environment, and the issue of climate change in particular, is perhaps the greatest challenge we face in the world today. Communities all over the world ar suffering from the effects of changes in the climate as temperatures and sea levels rise. We believe that climate change and living sustainably are issues which will affect all communities and which can only be tackled through joint action in conjunction with individual responsibility and behavioural change.

Health and Community Living

There are many benefits that becoming more environmentally friendly can have both for you and your community:

Get Healthy

Cycling and walking as opposed to driving will make you healthier and reduce your carbon impact on the environment.

Walking for 30mins each day will help towards fat loss and reduce the risk of diseases such as high blood preasure, heart disease and arthritis.

Get involved with a local food growing or gardening project. You can learn to grow your own food and vegetables-saving money- and get active at the same time.

Save Money

Switching off appliances that are not being used can save you £30 per year. Leaving unused appliances on standby costs around £800 million a year in the UK alone.

When boiling water, only use the amount of water that is required. This will save you about £25 per year (this figure is based on five kettles per day).

Only heat occupied rooms and turn of radiators in unused rooms. Keep doors shut to prevent heat escaping to unoccupied parts of the house.

Use heating controls or programmers to turn heating off while you are out of the house during the day and while you are asleep at night.

Replacing your boiler with a combintation condensing one can save around £235 a year from bills and around 1300kg of CO².

Insulating cavity walls saves £115 and 610kg of CO² a year, and costs around £250 or alternatively apply for grants that may be available (www.energysavingtrust.org.uk)

Insulate your hot water cylinder with a (at least 75mm thick) insulating jacket, which saves £35 and 190kg of CO² each year.

Local Action Inspiration

Attend local and national climate change events held by a wide range of organisations, such as Oxfam and the UK Youth Climate Change Coalition.

Write your MP a letter asking him or her to press the government for creative solutions. Find out your MP's contact details at www.theyworkforyou.com. The UK Youth Climate Change Coaltion (UKYCC) are also running a project called 'Adopt an MP' where young people 'adopt' their local MP to encourae them to push climate change up their agenda. To find out more visit www.adoptanmp.ukycc.org and register your interest.

Film parties. There are plenty of climate related films, such as the 'Age of Stupid', that you could choose to show to a group of friends at home to inspire action.

Have friends over for meals more often and cook together instead of individually to save energy on cooking. Play music or games together, instead of having many different people watching TV in their own homes.

Eco-Faith Project

Late last year and early this year Interact’s Eco-Faith project brought together a group of 16-25 year olds from a wide range of beliefs to explore the relationship between faith and environmental action. We believe the issue of the environment and climate change has the potential to unite otherwise distant communities towards a single purpose and help to transform conflicts through creative and innovative methods.